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Home on Safa Street in Herndon, Virginia, where the shooting took place. (Justin Jouvenal / The Washington Post)
The lawyer had already been honored for working with victims of domestic violence, but police said Thursday that it seemed like she had shot her two young sons in their home in Herndon. before returning his weapon.
Noera Ayaz's husband returned home on the night of the shooting and alerted the police. The officers found the 42-year-old mother dead in an upstairs bathroom following a gunshot wound, said her brother, Yasir Ayaz.
The apparent murder-suicide of a woman who has spent years defending other women and immigrants and who was active in the Muslim community has puzzled her family. The police gave no reason for the murders.
"I will remember her as being loved, passionate about people and passionate about law," Yasir Ayaz said of her sister. "She was a caring person, so it's a mystery as to how that happened."
Ayaz, who spoke while traveling from Texas to Virginia, said he was unaware of any signs of trouble in the months leading up to the tragedy. Her sister's family lived in a large single-family home among other prominent members of the nearby All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS), where she and her family revered.
Imam ADAMS and other officials did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday, but the mosque posted a brief message on its Facebook page indicating that counselors were available to the victims.
"We regret the loss of our beloved members of the community," he read. "We take this time to be in prayers."
Noera Ayaz's husband found the two children killed around 6:20 pm Wednesday, the police said. A friend who answered his cell stated that the husband was an individual and did not want to talk about what had happened.
Fairfax County police said she was still investigating the events that led to the death. The medical examiner had to perform autopsies on Thursday.
Ayaz stated that his sister had a biomedical degree from Brown University and a law degree from Columbia University Law School. Ayaz said that he and his sister had grown up in northern New York State and that she had lived in Qatar before moving to the DC area in the last few years.
The article says she has received the award for excellence for welfare protection for families of victims of abuse.
"Noera Ayaz has actively served the American Muslim community over the past two decades," the article says. ". . . She works hard to empower women and youth in hopes of bridging the gap between cultures.
She was also registered online as an immigration lawyer with the non-profit immigration group based in Herndon, Just Neighbors. Erin McKenney, executive director of Just Neighbors, said that they were "devastated." Ayaz had worked with the group as an entrepreneur for a few months.
"Noera was a beautiful person who loved her children," McKenney said in an email. "She was also an excellent immigration lawyer."
According to press reports, she was working with the Council on Islamic American Relations in New York in the early 2000s. Group leaders in New York stated that no one in the staff had been with the organization in New York City. during this period.
She has also worked as an associate at the law firm Baker Botts LLP, where she focused on intellectual property. The Turkish chain, the Daily Sabah, said it has traveled extensively to Japan, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Turkey and other countries.
"In the United States, although there is a democratic government system, women continue to fight for equal pay for equal work alongside their male counterparts," Noera Ayaz said in the online article. "There is also an alarming number of sexual assaults in the workplace. In the United States, one in six women is the victim of attempts or rapes during their lifetime. More than the political system, the underlying attitudes towards women must be respectful and dignified.
The murders occurred about a month after police said another mother from Fairfax County had shot dead two children. Veronica Youngblood, 33, was charged with murder in this case.
Jennifer Jenkins contributed to this report.
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